Conversation Over Cigarettes
by cries havoc
Summary: AU - Annabelle likes Simone/Miss Bradley, but maybe she has other options... Collins/Annabelle. One shot? Rating may change.
1. Chapter 1

Author's Note: I'm on a roll. And avoiding a paper. So, this is more AU than the other one. Let's suppose that Annabelle wanted to get over Simone instead of pursuing her. I love Collins and she deserves lovelovelove. So she gets Annabelle. Anyway, don't own stuff. Just my crazy ideas. More to come, if people care. Honestly, I'm normally not a review-hound, but I'm okay with this as a one-shot unless people want more. Does anyone even read this fandom?

Unbeta-ed. Mistakes are mine.

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Annabelle and Collins sat outside on a typical sunny California afternoon, with Annabelle smoking a cigarette and Collins fidgeting in the grass. The two girls had escaped their room, where Kristen and Cat were fighting, again, in favor of the light breeze on the grounds.

"So, your mom calls you Ann?" Collins asked quietly.

Annabelle took a quick drag and blew out the smoke lazily. "Yeah, my old friends, too."

Collins considered this for a moment before saying, "We're friends."

"Yeah," Annabelle said, looking over at Collins.

"Can I call you Ann?" Collins asked.

Annabelle smiled at the smaller girl, "Sure, Collins."

They sat in companionable silence for several minutes, enjoying the general pleasantness of spring and each other's company. Annabelle stubbed out her cigarette.

"You can call me Rachel," Collins said.

Annabelle looked over at her again, "That's your first name, right?"

Collins nodded. "No one calls me it except my parents, but yeah. I mean, if I'm going to call you Ann, you should be able to call me by my first name."

Annabelle shifted so she was resting back on her elbows, looking up at her friend. "Why does everyone call you Collins?"

Collins didn't respond at first. She stared off at nothing, rubbing one wrist.

"Rachel?" Annabelle tried.

"What? Oh, um," Collins stuttered for a moment.

Annabelle put a hand on her leg, hoping to calm her.

"My old best friend called me Rachel. I mean," Collins looked down at her lap, where Annabelle's hand still rested. "Everyone did then, in junior high, but after she moved away… I don't know, I just started asking people, even teachers, to call me Collins. It was just easier to move on that way."

"Move on?" Annabelle sat back up, brushing her hair behind her ear, "Move on from what?"

Collins sighed. She normally wouldn't tell this story, but they'd just been talking about Annabelle's crush on Miss Bradley. "From her."

Annabelle frowned, "Do you mean that the way I think you do?"

Collins nodded, "Yes."

"Oh," Annabelle said, pulling out another cigarette.

Collins watched her light the cigarette before asking, "Can I have one, Ann?"

Annabelle smiled and pulled another cigarette out, "I thought Cat and I were the bad girls, Rachel Collins."

Collins giggled a bit and reached for the lighter, but Annabelle pulled it back.

"Uh-uh, pretty girls don't like their own cigarettes," she said.

"You light your own," Collins noted.

Annabelle chuckled, "Well, from now on we light each other's then." She motioned for Collins to put her cigarette in her mouth. Lighting the cigarette, Annabelle laughed when Collins coughed.

"It's," Collins grimaced, "been a while."

"You've smoked before?" Annabelle asked.

"Yeah, with my old friend. Her older brother smoked," Collins replied.

They were quiet again for a while, with Collins coughing slightly. Annabelle smiled again.

"What's her name?"

"Julianne," Collins said.

"Nice name," Annabelle said, looking over at Collins as they both finished their cigarettes.

"Yeah, oh shit," Collins moved a book over the pack of cigarettes just as Miss Bradley came over to them.

"Hello Collins, Annabelle," Miss Bradley said.

"Hello Miss Bradley," the girls chorused.

"Enjoying the sunshine?" Miss Bradley asked, a smile playing on her lips.

"Yeah," Collins said, looking down.

"And smoking?"

"No way, Miss Bradley. I'm not, and my pal Collins doesn't smoke. Nope," Annabelle grinned and playfully bumped shoulders with Collins, who smiled nervously.

"Okay, I'll believe you this time." She started to walk away, but turned back. "Be careful, you two." Miss Bradley smiled at them and walked back towards the main school building.

Collins let out a low whistle, "That was close."

"Nah," Annabelle said, putting her cigarette pack back in her bag. "Miss Bradley is cool. I mean, she let you have Prissy."

"True," Collins nodded.

Annabelle moved back onto her elbows, "So, tell me about your girlfriend, Rachel."

Collins turned to face Annabelle, sighing. "We were kids, we never really dated. I mean," she paused, "we're still kids now, sort of." She shook her head, "Anyway, we never did more than kiss. But I definitely liked her."

"Does anyone here know?" Annabelle asked.

"No. I never told Kristen or Cat, and they're my only friends other than you," Collins said.

"Why not?"

Collins shrugged, "Never seemed the right time. 'By the way guys, I'm gayer than Michelle Peters.'" Collins and Annabelle both laughed.

"I wish I could have met this Michelle Peters chick."

"Yeah, since you're into older women and all," Collins teased, feeling more at ease around Annabelle than she'd felt in years.

"Hey!" Annabelle lightly hit Collins on the leg. They both laughed again.

"So, what's your type, Rachel?" Annabelle asked, honestly curious. She found Collins, Rachel, to be cute and sweet. Liking her didn't have the untouchable fire of Miss Bradley, but she was also, obviously, much more attainable. Annabelle didn't want to think of it as opportunistic, but if the two friends could have a little fun, she didn't see the harm.

Collins thought about this for a bit, before saying, "I like girls who are strong, brave. Who don't take crap from people. Julianne was always standing up for me in school. I got bullied a lot, that was part of why I started… you know."

Annabelle nodded.

"Honestly," Collins laughed, "I'd probably have a huge crush on you if we weren't good friends." She blushed a bit, playing with the grass.

Annabelle leaned back when she heard this, "What do you mean?"

Collins bit her lip, "Well, you're totally my type. You are your own person, you don't care what people think…" She shrugged. "And you're hot. Like, totally hot."

Annabelle found that she was blushing almost as badly as Collins.

"So, since we're friends, you don't like me, Rachel?" She asked, looking carefully at Collins.

Collins nodded, "Yeah, that'd be weird. I mean, we room together, Ann."

Annabelle nodded back. "Yeah, I guess it would." She didn't sound convinced.

"What's your type?" Collins asked back.

Annabelle shrugged, "I like all sorts of girls, but I really dig girls who fly under the radar."

"Why?" Collins cocked her head, curious.

"I like to draw them out," Annabelle said, smiling crookedly at Collins, who blushed.

"We're friends, Ann," she repeated.

"So?" Annabelle sat up again and leaned close to Collins.

"So it'd be weird."

"Would it?"

"Yes," Collins bit her lip again. "At least, I think so. Don't you?"

"If we got serious and then broke up, maybe, but we only have like two months left." Annabelle trailed a finger up Collins' leg, glancing around to see if anyone was watching them.

"Yeah?" Collins tried to hide behind her hair without moving too much.

"So there's no time to get serious. We could just, have fun. Besides, I need to get over Miss Bradley. Weren't you saying that before?" Annabelle grinned again.

"Well, yes, but I didn't mean…" Collins stopped Annabelle's hand from moving to the inside of her leg.

"Think about it, Rachel." Annabelle said, standing up and collecting her bag.

Collins watched her walk back to the building, knowing and only partly caring that her eyes were glued to her friend's ass. Collins flopped back in the grass.

"I am so going to regret this," she said to herself, before standing up and running after Annabelle.


	2. Chapter 2

Author's Note: I don't think I write physical scenes well, so this is very short. I tried!

"Oh, Ann," Collins gasped, her head hitting back against the wall. Annabelle had her pinned in the dorm bathroom in the middle of the night. They'd spent the majority of the night sitting together on Annabelle's bed, doing homework in silent company. Collins bit her lip to stay quiet as Annabelle continued to kiss and bite her neck.

"See, Rachel, isn't this fun?" Annabelle reveled in the feel of Collins' soft skin under her hands and gripped the other girl's sides tightly.

"Yes," Collins replied emphatically, "but what if we get caught?" Collins asked, looking toward the door.

"It's the middle of the night. We're fine," Annabelle said, hoping it would hold true. Normally the idea of getting caught made being with someone more enjoyable for her, but right now she just wanted to continue uninterrupted. Collins was more experienced than anyone would have given her credit for. At least the smaller girl was more experienced than Annabelle had realized.

"Okay, I hope you're right," Collins breathed, drawing out the last word into a kiss as Annabelle hit a particularly sensitive spot near her collarbone.

Collins pushed lightly at Annabelle's arms and Annabelle reluctantly pulled back. "What?"

Smiling, Collins said, "Your turn against the wall, Ann."

Annabelle chuckled, but allowed Collins to switch their positions.

Collins leaned in close, dragging her teeth softly along Annabelle's jaw. "You're so beautiful, Ann."

"Thanks, Rachel, you're not bad yourself," Annabelle said back, smiling as Collins kissed her softly.

"Whatever," Collins said, trailing kissing up toward Annabelle's ear slowly.

"Hey," Annabelle jerked her head again a bit, "you're adorable. Deal with it."

The two girls squared off for a moment.

"Okay, but you're going to have to convince me a bit more," Collins said, hoping this was an acceptable answer.

Annabelle's smirk told her it was.


End file.
